[meteorite-list] Australia's Meteorite Export Laws

From: ROCKS ON FIRE <meteorites_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Sat Jul 24 20:18:48 2004
Message-ID: <410302BA.3070706_at_optushome.com.au>

 G'Day, List,

recently it strikes me quite often that some sellers on eBay mention in
their description for Australian meteorites something like, that:

> ........ is getting hard to find since Australia recently passed a
> law forbidding the removal of any meteorite from the country!

Well, we should say .....the unlawful removal of any meteorite...
However, we still can legally export meteorites from Australia, if we
have an export permit or a letter of clearance.


In 1970 the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural
Organization (UNESCO) adopted the UNESCO Convention which you can read
up when you type: www. after that you paste
unesco.org/culture/laws/1970/html_eng/page1.shtml on the Means of
Prohibiting the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of
Cultural Property. Australia ratified 13.10.1989 the convention by
passing the Protection of Movable Cultural Heritage Act 1986 (the Act),
giving the 1970 Convention force in Australian law. (BTW: You can see
if your country ratified the convention, or if i.e. Algeria did or
Morocco, or.... Check the Ratifiers, 102 States Parties as at 3 October
2003, type: www. then you paste
unesco.org/culture/laws/1970/html_eng/page1.shtml ).

The Act regulates the export of Australia's significant cultural
heritage objects. It is not intended to restrict normal and legitimate
trade in cultural property and does not affect an individual's right to
own or sell within Australia.

For Australia, the criteria relating to 'Natural Science Objects', set
out in Part 3 of the National Cultural Heritage Control List came in
force on 1 May 1999, specify that an object in this category requires an
export permit if it is of significance to Australia and is not
adequately represented in public collections in Australia.

So, we apply for a letter of clearance from the State Museum if the
material does not meet these criteria and is adequately represented in
public collections in Australia.
For some meteorites we get it, for some unfortunately not - such is
life! And our State law's in this regard differ from State to State, so
you better do the right thing.
These laws are tuff and the penalties severe, so you must be silly if
you do not have clearance for your meteorites to export them.

I do have my permits!

Thanks for your patience, but I thought, it needed to be clarified.

Best regards from DOWN-UNDER,

Norbert & Heike Kammel
    ROCKS ON FIRE
       IMCA #3420
<%3Fhttp://www.rocksonfire.com%3F>

-- 
Best regards from DOWN-UNDER,
Norbert & Heike Kammel
    ROCKS ON FIRE
       IMCA #3420
www.rocksonfire.com <%3Fhttp://www.rocksonfire.com%3F>
-- 
Best regards from DOWN-UNDER,
Norbert & Heike Kammel
    ROCKS ON FIRE
       IMCA #3420
www.rocksonfire.com <%3Fhttp://www.rocksonfire.com%3F>

Received on Sat 24 Jul 2004 08:45:46 PM PDT